Rose, Rose Water [antikvár]

ForewordThe rose stands for a symbol of beauty and love in the collective memory of humanity, yet it IS also a medicinal plant, and it has a significant place in our culture and in our traditions. This book intends to present the rose from a historical, therapeutic and cultural perspective, with special emphasis on its traditional significance. As a researcher in the history of medicine, 1 could dedicate only the last 5 years of my studies to researches on the rose, because I could only lately understand that the rose was a medicinal plant as well. Although 1 had frequently encountered the rose during my investigations on Ottoman medicine, I had failed to notice the rose's outstanding place in therapeutics. Once I got aware of the therapeutic significance of the rose, I could rapidly move forward in my studies. On the other hand, I was well aware of the cultural significance of the rose for a long while. During the early years of my graduate study in the history of ^ medicine, I had worked on the Gülháne (The_ Rose House) of the Topkapi Palace, as a partof my research about the Gülháne Hospital. Thus I could recognize the significant place of the rose in our traditions at the very S beginning of my career in the history of ^ medicine.g When Mr. Bolat Tamer, the General Director ^^ of Gulbirlik, encountered several articles that " I had written about the rose, he encouraged tó me to present my rose research extensively, compiled in a book. I feel much indebted to Mr. Tamer for motivating me in the writing of this book. The book. The Rose, Rose Oil: Historical, Therapeutic and Cultural Perspectives was published in 2007, and was distributed among the Gulbirlik community. Later, I got many requests for the book from various parts of Turkey, that made me consider a reprint which will be widely distributed to bookshops all over Turkey. Mr. Devrim Yaman, the General Director of the Maestro Communications Agency, and his team redesigned the book in a new format. The B'lOTA Foundation, under the presidency of Mr. Cihat Dündar, volunteered to sponsorthe publishing, and a reprint was pubUshed in 2009.The book was out of print after a short while, and another reprint was needed. At the same time, we began working on an English edition, to make this information available for readers throughout the world. At that stage Mr. Ali Haydar Oner, the Governor of Isparta, and as always, Mr. Bolat Tamer, the General Director of Gulbirlik, supported us. Presenung the book in such high quality printing was possible only through their sponsorship, and I would like to thank them once more.The first chapter of the book covers the history of the rose. It presents the rose as it gloriously reigned on the earth, long before the humans appeared on it. While we speak about thousands of years of human history, we speak about millions of years of the rose's history. It left its signature on the rocks 60-70 millions years ago, and according to the molecular biologists, its age is more than 200 million years. That the rose was bom in Central Asia makes it very significant for us, as well as the 5000 years old cuneiform tablets, with information about the rose carved on them. The rose has always been a highly esteemed flower in all civilizations, and in the Muslim world it steps forward as the symbol of Prophet Muhammad.The second chapter is about the rose's exquisite fragrance, and describes its place in the perfume world. The beautiful scents were offered to gods in early historic times, and later they became indispensable for the people as magic charms. Incenses, various fragrant substances, flowers, and of course the rose, are very significant in this respect. This chapter also narrates the story of the enchanting fragrances of the Eastern worid, their mysterious trade of great secrecy, and how those fragrances affected the Westem countries.The third chapter is devoted to the distillation of the rose. Humans were not satisfied with enjoying the exquisite fragrance of the rose during the one month long blossoming